1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to musical instruments and more particularly a headstock for stringed musical instruments.
2. Description of the Related Art
Stringed instruments have been known for many thousands of years and includes harps, violins (with fretless fingerboards), and guitars (with fretted fingerboards). When the string of a stringed instrument is plucked, it vibrates according to its harmonic modes and natural frequencies. The energy generated by the vibrating string is transmitted to the adjacent air and other parts of the musical instrument. Generally, the string itself, its qualities and characteristics, as well as the qualities and characteristics of the instrument upon which the string is strung control the tonal related qualities for the string period. Consequently, a Stradivarius violin is considered to have a much finer tone than other violins.
Les Paul invented the electric guitar by which the vibration of metal strings is picked by magnetic pickups to create an electrical and/or electronic signal for amplification and processing. In modern music, electric guitars are one of the instruments of choice due to the dynamic range, portability, and artistic expression available through it. However, guitars are not the only stringed instruments which have been subject to electrification. Under the musical instruments as developed by Maestro Alex Gregory and otherwise, a wide variety of tuned, musically aligned, or coordinated stringed musical instruments and otherwise provide a wide tonal spectrum available to the musical artist. Consequently, advancements in headstocks and other components of stringed musical instruments are applicable not only to electric guitars, but also to other electrified stringed instruments such as sitars, bouzoukis, mandolins and the like.
Sympathetic vibrations occur to adjacent portions of a stringed musical instrument when a string thereof is plucked. Generally, the vibration to the string is localized between the bridge on the body of the stringed musical instrument and the nut which is at the end of the fret board. However, in order to adjustably tune the stringed instrument, the strings extend to a headstock onto pegs or posts that are part of machine heads. Keys implementing a gear-type system turn the posts and wrap the strings around the posts. In this way, the tension on the string can be adjusted and in so doing adjust the fundamental note played by the string.
The part of the string that extends past the nut and onto the post is also subject to vibration and has a fundamental harmonic frequency associated with the length of the string between the nut and the post. Additionally, the tension upon the string can be altered to dispose the connection of the string with the post in an angle other than one which causes the string to extend in parallel to the fingerboard. In fact, as indicated in Maestro Alex Gregory""s prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,519,165 for a compound headstock for a stringed musical instrument issued May 21, 1996, certain geometries may be used in headstocks in order to provide certain advantageous features such as allowing increased tension on the string while ensuring delivery of the proper note on that string. Such increased tension may require the alteration of the diameter of the string or otherwise in order to conform to the tonal preferences of the artist. However, as shown in the Gregory ""165 Patent, a compound headstock is known in the art that offsets machine heads from the plane of the fingerboard.
However, in advancing the art, Maestro Alex Gregory has found that certain advantageous qualities are delivered by advancing the art with respect to headstocks. Prior headstocks generally do not provide separate planes for each string or strings of similar characteristics. Additionally, no prior headstock provides advantageous and systematic means by which such multi-planar positioning of the string-attaching machine heads of the headstock can be achieved. Due to the tensions present on such strings, structural accommodations may need to be made in order to ensure that the headstock is not too brittle or fragile for the tensions applied by the strings.
Consequently, it would be an advantageous gain in the art to achieve a multi-planar headstock system and provide greater adjustability, tunability, tension adjustment, and harmonious interaction with the main portion of the played or plucked string. The present invention addresses these shortcomings in the art as well as others.
The present invention provides a multi-planar headstock that provides greater adjustability in the angle a string takes when traveling past the fingerboard and onto machine heads or adjustable or other string anchors. Additionally, the present invention provides greater adjustability and tunability for the string tension and for the string section present between the nut to the post. By providing a multi-planar headstock, the balance of the ratio of string weight to length is better coordinated. Additionally, improved headstock resonance occurs when the headstock picks up the resonant energy of the played strings.
All these advantages of the present invention are achieved through a headstock having a step-like appearance to provide different planes, or bases, to which each of the strings is attached. Preferably, the lowest string, that is the string with the lowest note, has the greatest extension past the nut and the greatest angle with respect to the fingerboard. The highest string, the string playing the highest note, preferably has the shortest extension past the nut and the shallowest angle with respect to the fingerboard. Intermediate strings between the lowest and highest string are correspondingly spaced away from the nut and are set at angles intermediate and between those of the lowest and highest strings. Certain preferable architectures and design for such a multi-planar headstock can be effective for specific instruments having specific numbers of strings and certain tonal qualities. These include banjos, bouzoukis, sitars, mandolins, and newly-synthesized stringed instruments taking advantage of newer technologies including those set forth herein.
It is an object of the present invention to provide stringed musical instruments that are more internally harmonious.
It is another object of the present invention to provide more harmonious stringed musical instruments that are more adjustable and tunable.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide more harmonious stringed musical instruments that allow greater or lesser tensions to be applied to the strings.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a headstock for stringed musical instruments that provide for a greater instrument harmony and playability.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a multi-planar headstock that allows the strings to be attached to the headstock and angles departing the plane of a fingerboard.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a multi-planar headstock that is sufficiently strong to allow the strings to be attached in different planes to different bases.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a system for attaching strings to a musical instrument in an adjustable manner that provides for adjustability in the angle the string departs from the plane of the fingerboard, adjustability of the overall string tension, tunability of the headstock string section from the nut to the post, and the balance of ratio of string weight to length, and the resonance of the headstock.